


Come, Take My Hand (I Won't Let You Go)

by barricadebastard



Series: Café Diem - Coffee Shop Shenanigans [1]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: (using they/them), Agender Hercules Mulligan, Alex and John are trans, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Coffee Shops, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Fluff, I mean, Multi, Other, alex mentions it vaguely but john doesnt, alex mistakes herc for his boyfriend and holds their hand, and john is the dude who offers a free frappuccino if alex holds his hand, but ends up with three boyfriends, but its not explicitly mentioned, herc is the innocent soul who just wants coffee, laf is the Token Cis who salvages the situation, their gender identities will be explored a bit more later
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-29
Updated: 2016-08-29
Packaged: 2018-08-11 21:28:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7908211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/barricadebastard/pseuds/barricadebastard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Many accidents have happened when Alex is sleep-deprived, and it's become more of a fact of life than something that surprises the other regulars at Cafe Diem. But accidentally holding the wrong hand is a whole new level. At least Herc is attractive.</p><p>Or: Alex enters a coffeeshop with one boyfriend, and leaves with one more and a datemate.</p><p>----------------</p><p>Based on that one tweet where a stranger grabbed another person's hand, mistaking them for his wife, and then ditched them both for the other stranger that offered him a frappuccino if he held his hand instead.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Come, Take My Hand (I Won't Let You Go)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [theother51](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theother51/gifts).



> dedicated to the amazing, gorgeous, talented theother51, who has written 98% of my favourite fics in this fandom and still graces me with their presence, god bless this literal angel
> 
> let's play: spot the outdated meme i've accidentally added in my writing. (i swear it's not intentional)

 Alex was a regular at the coffee shop. This came to the surprise of no one, as the man made a habit of staying up at ridiculous hours to maximise his writing time. And so, he would stumble into Cafe Diem every morning (though this early trip was by no means the last), bleary-eyed and zombie-like, rattling off his order in a monotone voice as he gazed distantly at a spot behind the baristas shoulder. It was as regular as clockwork, and at some point, people were more surprised at _not_ seeing him than they were to see him half-dead.

It was, he mused, probably an issue when other regulars as Cafe Diem would pat him on the shoulder and advise him to get some sleep. Receiving advice from strangers was never a good sign. But he shrugged it off, pushing the thought to the back of his already cramped mind. There was now limited space in his brain, and he wasn’t going to waste his time with thoughts as ludicrous as the concept of calming down.

It was a Monday morning, and as per usual, Alex was struggling to pull open a door that was very clearly labelled ‘PUSH’. He could see several familiar-looking customers shoot him exasperated looks through the window. He ignored them, and continued to fight his valiant battle.

“You’re supposed to push it,” an amused voice said behind him, a French accent curling his syllables into something softer. Alex blinked. Ah. So _that_ was why it was refusing to submit beneath his dauntless strength.

Today’s coffee shop visit was a little different. Alex was still exhausted, he was still struggling to process more than one thing at a time, he was still rattily-dressed and he still had eye bags dark enough to convince raccoons to accept him into their family. But this time, he was accompanied by his boyfriend, and this alone was enough to make him feel slightly less pathetic when he tripped in an attempt to climb the step at the door.

“I’m sorry,” Alex mumbled, face burning with humiliation. People were staring at them now, probably wondering why someone as gorgeous as Lafayette was hanging out with a guy who looked like someone had crapped him out into the bushes. It wasn’t fair that his boyfriend had the face and body of a model, with his full lips, perfectly-trimmed beard and tall stature. How was Alex _ever_ supposed to become someone worthy to stand by his side?

His thoughts were interrupted when Lafayette placed two warm hands on his shoulder and kissed the tip of his nose. “Don’t worry about it,” he said.

Honestly, what had Alex even done to deserve him?

They stood at the back of the line, silent as they pressed against each other for warmth. Alex wasn’t the most competent at conversation in the mornings, and Lafayette knew that he wouldn’t be getting any responses if he tried to initiate an intelligent conversation. Alex was squinting at the wall, trying to figure out whether or not the black spot had moved. Had he imagined it? Or was it a bug, carefully biding its time until it was sure no one was watching, so that it could scamper into the darkness, never to be seen again?

“Isn’t that Aaron?” 

Alex’s head whipped around so quickly at Lafayette’s words that he had to take a moment to counter the dizziness.

“Where?” Alex asked, lips twisting into a scowl at the mere sound of the man’s name. “I'm gonna fight him.”

“Babe, you can barely stand straight.”

“I'm still gonna fight him,” Alex insisted, but Lafayette only laughed and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. If it were anyone else, Alex would have been offended at being laughed at and not being taken seriously - his ego was _fragile,_ dammit - but he knew Lafayette meant nothing by it. And also, he was too tired for emotions.

“Behind the counter,” Lafayette pointed out, slender fingers tilting Alex's head in the right direction. And sure enough, behind the barista with multi-coloured hair and an terrifyingly blank face, was Aaron Burr.

“Go get him, babe,” Lafayette said. He pressed a kiss on Alex's forehead before brushing away a wayward strand of hair. “I'll hold your place.”

“That fucking bastard,” Alex growled, stalking to the front of the queue. Ignoring the disgruntled complaints muttered under the breaths of the other zombie-like students looking for a caffeine fix, he slapped a hand on the counter to get Aaron's attention.

 _“Burr,”_ he spat viciously. The colourful barista raised an eyebrow, but ultimately chose to ignore him in favour of calling up the next customer. “You haven't been answering my texts.”

“My phone broke,” Aaron said smoothly.

Alex would have believed him, if the other man hadn't had an intact phone clutched in his right hand. He looked at it pointedly, waiting for Aaron's next excuse.

“It doesn't turn on,” Aaron clarified. “It's a shame, but there’s nothing I can do until I get a new one. Maybe you can tell me whatever you were texting another time?”

Aaron hadn't even finished his sentence when his phone betrayed him with the custom ping of a notification, the screen lighting up. Alex pursed his lips.

“Really?”

Aaron sighed, a sound so weary that Alex _might_ have taken pity on him if he were anyone else. “Do you not know how to take a hint, Alex? Because I'm afraid hints are my expertise, and we're never going to finish this project unless you learn how to identify one.”

 _God,_ Aaron was infuriating. So not only was the man refusing to ‘show bias’ in their work (it wasn’t bias if one side is completely and utterly _wrong),_ but now he also expected Alex to accommodate him as though _he_ wasn’t the one who is being utterly unreasonable. Had Alex been in a healthier state, he would have shouted Aaron down until the man admitted defeat, but as it was, he still hadn’t had his coffee, and thus his usually inexhaustible supply of words had run dry, and he was forced to stalk back to the queue, seething in anger.

“Can you _believe_ him?” Alex hissed, grabbing Lafayette’s hand and angrily intertwining their fingers. Suddenly, the words he had been searching for at the counter returned to him, stumbling out of his mouth at an alarming fast rate, and probably slurring too. “What a dick. What a fucking _dick._ I hate him _so_ much, and the moment I get my coffee, and I’m gonna point out everything he’s ever been wrong about until he crumples to the floor, sobbing with the realisation that he is the human personification of disaster and deceit, the fucking basta-”

“Uh,” Lafayette said. “You’re holding the wrong hand.”

Alex blinked. Lafayette was standing further up the queue, and had turned around to watch Alex, biting his lip as though stifling a smile. But if Lafayette was _there,_ then whose hand was he holding?

“Hi,” the man next to him said, looking bemused. “Um.”

He was attractive, Alex noted, too confused to process much else. _Extremely_ attractive. Very broad, with the type of body that made him look like he could throw Alex over his shoulder and carry him around to wherever he wanted. He had the slightest hint of stubble smattering his chin. How would that stubble feel if he kissed him? Lafayette’s beard was coarse and slightly prickly, but the stranger’s didn’t seem it would be as noticeable. And _god,_ his skin looked smooth. How did he manage that? Alex was still trying desperately to pretend he didn’t have yet another breakout of spots. But more importantly, how could Alex stroke the stranger’s cheeks to see if they were as smooth as they looked, without looking like a creep?

Uh oh, he’d been staring for too long. Cute Stranger was now looking at him weirdly.

“Hi,” Alex said finally, trying not to grin triumphantly. Nailed it. That was normal human interaction and Not-Creepy.

But the stranger only looked more confused.

“My name’s Alex,” he added. Hopefully, Cute Stranger would offer his name, and his phone number, and then sweep him up and carry him away so that he, Lafayette and Alex could live together and all get married.

“Herc,” the man replied with a smile. “Um, they/them.”

“Cool, cool, cool,” Alex nodded. _Shit,_ he had misgendered them the whole time. He, of all people, should have known not to judge gender by appearances, but he had gone and assumed they were cis. Shit. “Cool, cool. Cool, cool, cool, very cool. Extremely cool. Um.”

There was a pregnant pause, and when Alex glanced at Lafayette, he was covering his face with his scarf, even though his laughter was belied by the way his entire body was shaking. Herc, on the other hand, seemed curious, and appeared to be waiting for Alex to speak.

“Uh,” Alex said. The pressure of being expected to move the conversation on was too much for someone as sleep-deprived as Alex was at the moment. At least, that was his excuse for his next comment. “Nice hands.”

It was true, Alex realised suddenly. He hadn't noticed it before, but Herc's hands were warm, and _big._ Very nice for hand-holding, in fact. It was the perfect temperature; not clammy and cold, but also no sign of over-heating. Surprisingly soft, too. Did Herc use hand moisturiser or something?

“Um, yeah, I have this, uh, collection of hand moisturisers. Mostly because they smell nice, but you know…”

So Alex had accidentally spoken out loud. Oops? As long as Herc didn't know how much he wanted to smell their hands, it was okay.

Alex paused. Had he said that out loud? Apparently not, since Herc's expression hadn't changed from an adorable conglomeration of bemused and amused.

“Nice hands,” Alex repeated, mostly to fill the silence. “Big and warm. Nice.”

Herc was now beginning to look concerned, brow furrowed as they peered into Alex's eyes. Herc had nice eyes too. Was there nothing about this man that _wasn't_ perfect? They were very… friendly. Their eyes just seemed to draw people in. Alex would trust them with his life. It didn't matter that this was their first time talking to them, he would give them his credit card in a heartbeat.

“So…” Herc said, when Alex was too absorbed in their eyes to make conversation. “We're doing this?”

“I gotta,” Alex said solemnly. “I'm a regular here, and everyone already thinks I'm some sort of zombie. I need to save face and pretend I totally intended to hold your hand.”

There was another pause.

“Plus, I feel committed to finishing this coffee experience with you,” Alex added.

A couple of feet away, Lafayette had given up all pretence and was now openly laughing.

“You're welcome to,” Herc said, biting their lip. They were probably trying not to laugh. Alex kind of wanted them to laugh; they looked the type of person to have a beautiful laugh, like music, or the soft murmuring of a distant waterfall. He also wanted to be the one to be biting Herc's lips, but that was none of anyone else's business. “But I'm not paying.”

Alex's face dropped. “Never mind, I'm going to have to terminate this marriage.”

 _“Marriage?”_ Herc choked out, body shaking with laughter.

“I'm filing for a divorce,” Alex said, ignoring them. “I'm going back to my boyfriend.”

Herc's smile slid off their face, but Alex's mind was too slow to understand why. All he knew was that suddenly Herc looked sad, and Alex wanted them to be happy. How could he make them happy? What made other people happy? Alex was happy when he got kisses, and so was Lafayette. But he wasn't sure how much Herc would appreciate that.

“I'm sorry, he's very sleep-deprived,” Lafayette interjected smoothly, moving over to place a hand on Alex's arm. “And also poly, since you seem pretty disappointed at the mention of a boyfriend.”

Herc's face went slack with surprise, before they cleared their throat. “That's, um, good news.”

Alex linked his hand with Lafayette's. How had he mistaken Herc for him? Now that he was slightly more awake (though still in desperate need for an indecent amount of caffeine), he knew the two had completely different hands. “Laf, they're not paying for my coffee,” he whined playfully.

“Well, I'm not paying either,” Lafayette said with an easy shrug. Herc laughed, and Alex's guess of them having a laugh more beautiful than any kind of music or art on earth was pretty accurate. He wanted to listen to Herc laugh for _years._

Alex pouted. “This is bullying.”

Further up the line, John Laurens turned around to grin at him. It was a testament to Alex’s exhaustion that he hadn’t even noticed the man was in front of him, but now he stood in all his curly-haired, freckled glory, smiling down at Alex like the sun blessing plants with its warmth and sunlight. (So Alex _may_ have something of a crush on John.)

“Come hold my hand, Alex, I’ll get you any frappuccino you want,” he said teasingly.  

This was a _terrible_ idea. He had been battling his crush on John for almost a year now, and it was now routine for Alex to crash on Lafayette’s bed every Thursday afternoon, bemoaning how beautiful the freckled angel looked in lecture that day as Lafayette ran a soothing hand through his hair and religiously stalked John’s instagram page. And when Alex wasn’t about to collapse from fatigue, he’d curse himself for indulging in something that would only make his feelings for the South Carolinian even more difficult to repress.

But for now, he clumsily patted Herc’s cheek (he was right, it was just as smooth as he had expected), kissed Lafayette, and skipped further up the line to take John’s outstretched hand eagerly. Perhaps too eagerly, but there was no such thing as dignity for the sleep-deprived.

Lafayette snorted behind him, the traitor. How dare he relish in Alex’s pain when he himself had waxed poetic about John’s hair and eyes and lips and hands?

Holding John’s hand was different to holding Herc’s or Lafayette’s. For one, his hand was only slightly larger than Alex’s, which was a blessing, since both Lafayette and Herc were much bigger than him. No matter how beautiful they were, he was sick of being surrounded by BFG-wannabes. But his fingers were longer as well, and slender. Like a pianist. Did John play any instruments? He looked like a pianist, but Alex could just as well imagine him with a harp, strumming the strings up in heaven with all the other angels.

Alex wasn’t sure what he had done to end up with a beautiful boyfriend, his crush willingly holding his hand, and an adorable stranger who seemed to be interested in him and was now possibly flirting with his boyfriend. His luck had never been this good, but he decided, just this once, he would count his blessings and move on.

He was so caught up in how lucky he was to be surrounded by not one, but _three_ beautiful people, that the rest of the queue seemed to disappear in seconds.

“What would you like?” John asked Alex, eyes crinkling as he smiled. “I was serious about buying you that drink.”

John was _definitely_ a keeper.

“Large black coffee, one sugar, three shots of espresso,” he rattled off automatically. John raised an eyebrow. Thank god Alex didn’t have to think about his order, because John’s eyes were _really_ captivating and now Alex sort of wanted to count his freckles, and the point was that he was _distracted._

The customer in front of them disappeared, clutching their hot drink, and John and Alex finally stepped up to the counter. The barista with the rainbow-dyed hair didn’t look any less bored than when Alex had last seen her, but her tone was polite enough as she asked the two of them for their order.

“One large black coffee, one sugar and three shots, and one double chocolatey chip frappuccino please.”

It was Alex’s turn to raise his eyebrows in surprise. John grinned sheepishly. “I like my drinks sweet.”

“Well, you know what they say,” Alex said airily. “Like drinker, like drink.”

“Mon cher, _no one_ says that.”

“Shut up, Laf, I know what I’m talking about,” Alex said haughtily, partly to cover up that he had completely forgotten the original saying. He turned around to shoot his boyfriend A Look, only to see him roll his eyes and link arms with Herc. When had _that_ happened? He had left the two of them alone for five seconds and already Herc was smiling at Lafayette like he had positioned the sun and stars himself. How did Lafayette seduce someone so quickly when Alex had been talking to John for the same amount of time, and he was _still_ resisting Alex’s charm?

John cleared his throat, drawing Alex’s attention to him again. “Um, so… I didn’t imagine Lafayette saying you guys are polyamorous, did I?”

“No,” Alex said slowly. “Why?” Oh god, if John had a problem with poly relationships, Alex was going to have to throw himself off the Empire State building, and then he would end up traumatising innocent passersby with his mangled corpse splattered on the pavement, and-

Oh. John was _blushing._ “No reason,” he mumbled, staring determinedly at the wall.

Huh. Maybe Alex wasn’t so bad at this flirting thing after all.

Ten minutes later, all four of them were sitting at a table. Alex was more awake after his daily dose of caffeine, Lafayette was attempting to count all of John’s freckles (it was really amazing how Lafayette was often on the same wavelength as Alex), and Herc’s hand was warm on his knee.

“Hey,” Herc murmured, knocking their shoulder against Alex’s to get his attention. Alex made an inquisitive noise. “Is this… you know, a date?”

Alex stopped to think about it. John was giggling as Lafayette lost track for the billionth time, their drinks were half-finished but forgotten, and the toasty warmth and the feeling of his thigh pressed against Herc’s made him want to say yes.

“Yes,” he said finally. After all, Alex had never been known for holding back from what he wanted.

Herc’s smile made it impossible for him to regret his answer.

**Author's Note:**

> when will i stop naming my fics after beyonce lyrics. 
> 
> so because i have 0 impulse control, i turned a short prompt into a series. 
> 
> (but seriously, please check out all of theother51's fics, every single one of them is really well-written and we, as a fandom, do not deserve them) 
> 
> [lafayettes-baguette](http://www.lafayettes-baguette.tumblr.com) is my tumblr


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